PS 

A1W15 




LIBRARY OF CONGRESS. 



^ \ 



Shelf: : 

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. 



Waiting for the M<J1^ning 



And Other Poems. 



BY THE AUTHOR OF 

Twenty Reasons for Believinc, the Coming 
OF THE Lord is Nigh." 



y- 



"While I live will I praise the Lord; I will sing praises unto my 
God while I have any being." — Psalm cxlvi. 2. 






CHICAGO: 

F. H. REVELL, 148 and 150 MADISON STREET, 

Publisher 0/ Evangelical Literature. 



^' r -^ .9 ] 



li 



Copyrighted 1878, by F. H. Revell. y^ 



OTTAWAY & COMPANY, PRINTERS, CHICAQO. 



CONTENTS. 



Page. 

Waiting for the Morning, . - _ 5 

The Word of the Lord. . - - . 7 

" Redemption draweth Nigh," - . . g 

" As Silver is Tried," - - - - - 12 

Sinai and Sion, ..... 14 

How Long, O Lord? - - - - - 17 

In His Name, . > . . .^ 19 

Jehovah Nissi, - . - - - 22 

Jesus ! Bending from Above, - - - 24 

Temperance Hymn, - - - - - 26 

The Voice of the Angel. - = - . 28 

A Song in the Night, - - - - - 30 

Dedication Hymn, - . - - - 32 

We'll Live in Tents, - . - - - 34 

"All Things ARE Yours," ... 36 

"Wait, I say, on the Lord," - - - - 40 

"Teach them unto Thy Children," . - 42 

It is well with my Soul, - - - - 44 

" We shall not all Sleep," - - - 46 

" Shall Walk in White," - - - - 52 



"^^ ". ^ 






4^^ 



"v 



A presentation edition of these poems may be had^ ^ 
bound in cloth ^ antique^ red and gold^ Price 75 cents. 
Paper cover edition^ 25 cents. 



T^ 



Waiting: far tlxB ^^ttrning:. 



REVELATION XIX. 7. 



HERE is no roof in all the world, of 
^li' 4M | palace or of cot, 

f^ That hideth not some burdened heart 
nigh breaking for its lot : 
I The earth is filled with pain and tears, and 
closer draws the gloom ; 
And light or balm there can be none till Christ, 
the Lord, shall come. 

O Morn, when like a summer bird my spirit shall 

go free, — 
When I shall see Thee as Thou art, and be, my 

God, like Thee ! 
Like Thee ! like Thee ! all spotless white — this 

heart, this will, as Thine I — 
O love of God, O blood of Christ, O grace and 

power divine ! 

5 



My Saviour, who doth know the thirst the long- 
ing spirit feels, — 

O Bridegroom, now so long afar, why stay Thy 
chariot-wheels? 

Were ever eyes so dim with grief, breasts so 
oppressed with care ? 

Did ever hearts so yearn to catch thy whisper from 
the air ? 

Thou lonely one, lift up thy head — array thee for 

the feast; 
He that hath tarried long is near — the glow is in 

the East! 
O Morning Star, so soon to lead Thy chosen one 

away, — 
O Sun of Righteousness, bring in the everlasting 

day ! 



The Ward nf the Lard. 



REY. III. 20. 



M^idiiA^ 




SAW, when the twilight of morning wa 

o'er, 
A stranger stand still at a half-open door : 
A child played within, but the song of a bird 
Filled the place with its notes, and the knock 

was unheard. 
O earth, earth, earth, hear the Word of the 
Lord ! " 



I looked soon again, — to my heart it seemed soon. 
But hours had swept on, and the sun stood at 

noon ; — 
The stranger still there — still unheeded his cry — 
And I saw through the lattice gay dancers flit by. 
" O earth, earth, earth, hear the Word of the 

Lord ! " 

7 



8 

The shadows had crept from the wood to the plain, 
The wind had grown chill, when I passed there 

again ; 
Still patiently waited that form as before, 
,And his knock sounded loud on the now bolted 

door. 
" O earth, earth, earth, hear the Word of the 

Lord ! " 

I watched until even — stood listening there 
Till midnight rang out on the storm-driven air : 
Then knew by the footfall the Lord had passed 

on, — 
That the harvest was past, — that the Summer was 

gone ! 
O earth, earth, earth, hear the Word of the 

Lord ! " 



^^3|t)tlt?mp1i0n BrawBtli B^ijjk.^^ 



LUKE XXI. 28. 




Y SOUL cri^th out for a jubilee song ! 
There is joy in my heart, let me praise 
with my tongue ; 



/^rv. ^ For I know, though the darkness of Egypt 
5*^ still lowers, 

That the time ere release is not ages, but hours. 

As sailors, not yet within sight of the strand, 
Know well their approach by the " loom of the 

land;" 
So they, who will bend but a listening ear, 
Can now catch the whisper that tells He is near. 

He zs near — the stars in their courses prepare 
To utter the sign He hath bid them declare! 
The world in its guilt waxeth haggard and grim, 
And its cup of iniquity fills to the brim ! 
9 



10 

The curse so long camped upon Bosphorus' side, — 
And she that sits queen upon Tiber's foul tide, — 
And Famine and Pestilence stalk in the band 
Of witness, attesting the Lord is at hand. 

Spent at last the long cycle of wilderness dearth, 
Once again sounds of latter-rain gladden the earth 
In the land, stil despised, but preparing e'en now. 
For the feet that shall stand upon Olivet's brow. 

And thither to gather the tribes have begun. 
From the East and the West, from the climes of the 

sun; 
For the times of the Gentiles have answered their 

need, 
And the hiss has gone forth unto Israel's seed. 

The world, as of yore, naught of all doth divine, — 
Saith again that believers are filled with new wine, — 
Suffers warning to pass all unseen and unheard, 
And, like Herod, fulfills while opposing His word. 



11 

Then welcome, thrice welcome, ye tokens of God ! 
What else but His coming can comfort afford ? 
What presence but His set this prisoned earth free? 
O Star of the Morning, our hope is in Thee ! 




''^8 Siluer is Tried." 

II. CORINTHIANS XII. 9. 

I^H! when we reach the fields of yonder 
heaven, 
And from some jasper height 
Review the path our toiling feet were driven 
Through this world's weary night, — 
How our fond hearts will love to gaze and linger 
Above dark valleys trod, 
When faint, and torn with desolation's finger 
We yet held fast to God ! 

By the green spot where, under village willows, 

Life's earliest blooms were strewn ; 
Upon the sea, beneath whose midnight billows 

The brood we loved went down ; 
O'er earthly marts, where schemes of proud en- 
deavor 
Were broken one by one ; 
12 



13 

The faithful Lord the grace withholding never 
To say, Thy will be done ! 

O Lord, give us the strength, until faith's journey 

Shall lose itself in sight, 
To keep our charge through all this fierce, wild 
tourney. 

Each like a faithful knight, — 
Shouting, ere yet the walls we have beleaguered 

In any stone have moved, — 
One of the band upon whose shield the legend,— 

" Not having seen, they loved." 



Sinai and. Si^tx* 



HEB. X;i. 18-24. 






rt^ 



HE Lord, in majesty on high, 
Hath said the soul that sins shall die. 
'^"^ A righteous law, for who could trust, 



If He that ruleth were not just? 



Refrain. — God so loved sinners that He gave 
His only Son their souls to save ; 
That whosoever would believe, 
Should everlasting life receive ! 

But lo ! my heart is stained with sin ! 
Behold, my conscience is not clean ! 
In thought and wish, in deed and word, 
I have transgressed against the Lord. 

I strive to break the tempter's chain, 
But pledges, firm resolves are vain ; 
14 



15 

I fail to do the thing I would, — 
We wrestle not with flesh and blood. 

I can not stand before God's face, 
Nor man nor angel in my place : 
No surplus worth have they to set 
Against my dread arrear of debt. 

I am undone, — the law in wrath 

Bays, like a hound, upon my path. 

And conscience writes on earth and sky, — 

The soul that sinneth it shall die I 

Hark, heart of mine ! what holy psalm 

Comes, like a dove, thy fears to calm. 

From Calv'ry's heights — from Bethlehem's plain,- 

A sweeter than angelic strain ? 

O blessed Gospel, — word of power 
Heard, but unheeded till this hour ! 
'Twas God who hung upon that tree, 
And died a substitute for me ! 



16 

Refrain. — God so loved sinners that He gave 
His only Son their souls to save ; 
That whosoever would believe, 
Should everlastirbg life receive ! 



jpiaar Jj^mxi}^ 10 ILmd 



ZEPHANIAH I. 14. 



^^H|OW long, O Lord, until this earth 
^-E^pl Shall fill its round of guilty years ? 
~;^'i^ How long, unchecked, shall sm give birth 
X^ To blasted hopes and pangs and tears ? 

I How long shall might and shameless greed 

Exult and sing a victor's song? 
How long shall heart-strings break and bleed? 
How long, O Lord, — my God, how long, how 
long! 

How long within our breasts shall pride 

Lurk like a poison in the blood ? 
A loathsome thing, close coiled and hid, 

To bar us from the peace of God ? 
When shall the storm have spent its breath, — 



17 



18 

The flame relent, — when break the thong 
That binds us to this flesh of death ? 

How long, O Lord, — my God, how long, how 
long ' 

Not long, — the dawn is on the hills ! 

From earth and sky a voice is heard ; 
And lo, to-day, dead Israel thrills 

In echo to her prophets' word ! 
Lift up, O child of God, thy head, 

And wake again the harp to song ! 
The Bridegroom hasteth to His bride : — 

Not long, O child, hast thou to wait, — not long ! 



Jn Mis B^ame* 



ISAIAH LV. I. 




j|H ! what a boundless fund waspledged 
The sinner's debt to pay, 
When Christ upon a felon's cross 
^|S^ Gave His pure life away ! 

Chorus. — *' Come to the feast," the Gospel 
cries ; 
" Come poor, come blind, come lame, — 
Take all that thou hast faith to grasp, 
In Christ the Sufferer's name ! " 

" His name ! " — O heart, canst thou do that ? 

Canst thou trust grace alone ? 
Thy name, thy good, thy sin forgot, — 

A beggar at His throne ? 

If thou dost stand on thy good deeds, — 
No sense of guilt in thee, — 

19 



20 

Thy trust is thine own righteousness, — 
Christ's blood is not thy plea. 

If thou art crushed with shame, 

And fear for that to trust His blood,— 

The bane is still self-righteousness, — 
Christ's merit standeth good. 

If thou wouldst ask in Jesus' name, 
Why should thy sins restrain ? 

Did Christ offend when thou didst fall ? 
Hath His soul suffered stain ? 

Hath ought occurred to make His plea 
Less than supreme with God ? — 

Do not self-glory,— legal fear, — 
Alike reject the blood ? 

Come, then, each toiling, trembling one,- 
Whate'er thy burden, come. 

And take what shall supply thy need, — 
Though years have heaped the sum. 



21 

" Thy need,"— the half it doth not tell, — 

Love bursts that narrow space ; 
The measure of the gift shall be, 

The riches of His grace ! 

These Gospel days ! — O lips ring out 

The tidings all abroad ! — 
Grace rules this hour — the next may launch 

The judgments of our God ! 

Proud heart — proud heart — while yet He waits. 

By mercy be enticed ! 
Lord, touch men's tongues with fire to tell 

The finished work of Christ ! 

Chorus. — "Come to the feast," the Gospel cries; 
" Come poor, come blind, come lame, — 
Take all that thou hast faith to grasp, 
In Christ the Sufferer's name ! " 



jBhGuah Bissi* 



I. SAMUEL XIV. 6. 




HEN the clouds hung dark o'er Israel, 
and the fierce Philistine host, 
Breathing threatenings and slaughter, 
sought her undefended coast, — 
Then how precious to the faithful this 
eternal truth they knew, — 
"There is no restraint to God to save by many or 
by few ! " 

When Benhadad compassed Aphek, and the fol- 

loweis of tlie Lord, 
Like two little, flocks of kids, stood pent within 

that heathen horde ; — 
When at morn the blood of Syrians moistened all 

the plain like dew, 
" There was no restraint to God to save by many 

or by few." 

2Z 



23 

When at night the false apostle, bringing armed 

men to aid, 
Came with swords and staves to take Him, whom 

for gain they had betrayed ; — 
When by word nor deed resisted, prostrate sunk 

that scoffing crew, — 
*' There was no restraint to God to save by many 

or by few." 

Men of God, who stand confronting evil in this day 

of ours, — 
Foes in heart and foes surrounding — principalities 

and powers, — 
Listen to the sounding watchword, true as ever, 

true for you ; — 
" There is no restraint to God to save by many or 

by few ! " 



Ibsus! BBEtling: ham ^hnv^. 



I. PETER I. 8. 



E-ESUS ! bending from above, 




Whom not having seen we love 



'py '^ Thou who hast our surety stood, 
Paid the ransom with Thy blood !- 
Saviour, list'ning from yon height, 
Hear our song from forth the night ! 

We have never seen Thee, Lord, 
Never Thy dear voice have heard ; 
But we know Thee, and do rest 
Now by faith upon Thy breast : 
Privileged as none above, — 
Whom not having seen we love. 



24 



25 

Soon shall part these earthly clouds ; 
Soon shall lift this mist which shrouds 
Soon shall drop this dross that clings ; 
Soon shall sound the sweep of wings; 
Soon to Thine, the trumpet word; 
Soon the sight of Christ, the Lord ! 



T^mpi^raxxcB jpitjmn. 



PETER I. 5-7. 




|0, ye who seek to shun the cup, 
Run high the Gospel banner up ! 
One name alone hath power to win 
And keep the sinner from his sin. 

Chorus. — We wrestle not with flesh like ours, 
But Prmcipalities and Powers: 
And he who would withstand their shock, 
Must have his feet on Christ, the Rock ! 

We dare not trust our soul's great cause 
To human will and moral laws : 
To save, the name of Christ was given, 
And there's none other under heaven. 

When Jesus says to every man, 

" Come to Me now and be made clean, — 

26 



27 

Clean every whit, — for thee I bled ' " — 
Who dare present a pledge instead ! 

When our own hearts were cold and dead, 
We lived through Christ, the living bread ; 
And when we seek another's good, 
We'll recommend the self-same food. 

We choose for our foundation broad, 
The precious promises of God ; 
And on them, tier on tier above, 
Rear temp'rance, godliness and love. 

Now pour the hosts of sin abroad, 
As never since the earth was trod : 
The skies are dark, and wise are they 
Who heed the Gospel call to-day. 

Chorus. — We wrestle not with flesh like ours. 
But Principalities and Powers : 
And he who would withstand their shock, 
Must have his feet on Christ, the Rock ! 



TbB ^air^B of ih^ ^ng^t 



I. THES. IV. 1.6. 



\ HEN all dark round our path draw the 
I curtains of sorrow, 

Jfc^/^ " And deeper the trouble in store, — 

I^N^ O what comfort to think that perhaps ere 
the morrow 
The struggles of earth will be o'er : — 
That perhaps ere this day 
Shall have shed its last ray, 
The voice of the angel will call us away ! 

O how blessed to think of the mansions preparing 

Just out of our sight over there ! 
Of the dear ones, whose spirits this moment are 
sharing 

Our longing to meet in the air ! 



5^9 

For perhaps ere this day 
Shall have shed its last ray, 
The voice of the angel will call us away ! 

O to think of the saints we shall meet in yon heaven, 

Apostles and martyrs and seers ! 
Of the Marys, and Ruth, — of the one, much forgiven, 
Who washed the Lord's feet with her tears ! 
And perhaps ere this day 
Shall have shed its last ray, 
The voice of the angel will call us away ! 

We shall see Him who prayed that lone night in 
the garden, — 
Who died with the thorns on His brow ; 
We shall sit at His feast who hath purchased our 
pardon. 

And, like Him, be whiter than snow : 
And perhaps ere this day 
Shall have shed its last ray. 
The voice of the angel will call us away ! 



J. -iang: in ibe B%bi 

PSALMS XLII, 6-8. 

HERE'S darkness all round in my earthly 

affairs,— 
Wave following wave, tribulation and cares ; 
My way is shut up on the left and the right ; — 
And, yet, I've a mind for a song in the night I 
A song in the night, — a song in the night, — 
My heart, canst thou give Him a song in the night ? 

Right here somethmg says : " It were well that the 

sun 
Should just streak the East ere the song is begun ; 
'Twere prudent to wait for a trifle of light : — " 
Away with the doubt, — now a song in the night. 
A song in the night, — a song in the night, — 
With David, I'll give Him a song in the night. 




31 

The way and the time I'm not certain about, — 
Of this sure I am, — that He will bring me out; 
And so, waiting not for fulfillment and sight, 
I'll discount His promise with songs in the night. 

A song in the night, — a song in the night, — 
Right here, — now, — I'll give Him a song in the night! 

No incense which rises to God on our part, 

So grateful as songs from a pain-stricken heart : — 

So sorrow itself shall be clad with delight. 

For sorrov/ alone can give songs in the night. 

A song in the night, — a song in the night, — 
Let all that is in me, give songs in the night ! 



B^dicatiutx Jp[t):mti. 



Written for the opening of the re-built North Side Tab- 
ernacle, Chicago, June i, 1S76. 




\il UR Father, God, Eternal One ! 
And Thou, the living corner-stone ! 
^^ And Holy Spirit — one and three — 
We dedicate this house to Thee ! 

Take for Thine own, and write in power 
Thy name on wall and shaft and tower; 
And make it, by Thy blessing given, 
A house of God — a gate of heaven ' 

Here may Thine honor dwell, O Lord ! 
Here power attend the spoken Word ! 
Here saints be fed, — here sinners find 
The Lamb who suffered for mankind ! 

Here may there rise prevailing prayer, — 
Here praises ring — here vanish care ; 

32 



33 

Here trembling ones lay down their fears, 
And bathe a Saviour's feet with tears 

And here, though all around should sleep, 
May some true watch and warden keep, 
With call of guard and tap of drum, 
Until the Lord, our God, shall come ! 

So, Lord, at last, may every one 
Who here professed to love Thy Son, 
Be found among the host that stands 
Within the house not made with hands ! 



Wb'U Liu« itt Tettts. 



HEB. XI. 8-10. 




OD bids His people on the earth, 

Ere yet He comes and calls them hence, 
\x ^^ ^iye, unknit to home and hearth, 
Like far-bound travelers, — in tents. 

Chorus. — We'll live in tents until our feet 
Shall reach the land by sin untrod ; 
The gate of pearl — the golden street, — 
Whose builder and whose maker, God ! 

It is His will that we should pass. 
Like strangers, separate and aside 

From all the world-enamoured mass 
That crowd the Babylons of pride. 

He'd have us rear no stately towers, — 
Sink no foundation walls of stone ; 

34 



35 

But camp each night a few short hours, 
And ere the morrow's dawn, move on. 

O Brother ! whatsoever chain 

Binds us to fleshly lust and strife, 

Here let us rend it in God's name. 
And live, henceforth, the pilgrim. life ! 

Chorus. — We'll live in tents until our feet 

Shall reach the land by sin untrod ; 
The gate of pearl — the golden street, — 
Whose builder and whose maker, God ! 



^^^U Thttigs arB ^aurs/^ 



PHILIPPIANS I. 6. 




IVE me, O God, a meek and quiet spirit ! 
Thy meekness, Lord, — give Thou of that 
to me. 
I would that this proud heart that I inherit 
Were sunk forever in a shoreless sea. 

This heart, intent, as with a vulture's talons. 
All things to grasp, and coin them into pelf: 

Though heaven and earth were trembling in the 
balance, 
Still pond'ring only the result to self! 

This heart, so quick to entertain suspicion 
Of others' motives, and offence to take; 

So prone to scorn the gentle disposition 
That hopeth all for charity's sweet sake ! 



37 

This heart, that knows the touch of disappoint- 
ment, — 
Feels the cold stirring of the envy there, — 
When e'en the cause of God hath found advance- 
ment. 
But found it through another's deed or prayer ! 

I shrink to tell what dwells within my bosom : 
It is a cage of foul and unclean things. 

The deeper through its hidden caves I fathom. 
The darker, blacker is the earth which clings. 

Yet, so corrupt by nature and by doing 
As here, O Holy Lord, confessed I am; 

Yet shall I stand at last by Thine own choosing, 
All faultless white in presence of the Lamb ! 

For art Thou not the Lord of Lords — Almighty? 

Did Jesus not for us the law fulfill? 
And am I not Thy child, — and was it lightly 

Said that a child may ask Thee what he will ? 



38 

And so I ask Thee, Lord, to make me holy ! 

I tremble as I pray ! — but from this hour, — 
In what way seemeth best, — from hence and wholly, 

Keep me from yielding to the tempter's power ! 

I tremble, for I've felt the flame's fierce burning 
When some dark sin was being judged and 
doomed : 

Lord, help me to lie still within the furnace, 
That so the dross may sooner be consumed ! 

I know that till this life shall cease its running, 
The darts of Satan will my soul assail, — 

But, Saviour, Thou who knoweth all his cunning, 
Do Thou encase me in Thy triple mail. 

The faith of Jesus, — I do ask to share it ! 

His patience, and the wisdom from above : 
That I may yield the fruit of Thine own spirit, — 

Long- suff'e ring, goodness, gentleness and love.' 

I ask that Thou wilt sanctify me wholly ; 
That I may be all cleansed by Thy word : 



39 

And be preserved in spirit, soul and body, 
Blameless unto the coming of the Lord. 

Thy coming, Lord! O bliss beyond comparing ! 

glorious tryst with Jesus in the air ! 

O sights and rest that I shall soon be sharing! — 

1 know in whom I trust, — I shall be there ! 



u 



W'diXj J Sag;, nn Wxt^ IsUxAJ^ 



ISAIAH XXVIII. 16. 




Christian i — thou upon whose brow 

■il Christ His own dear name hath traced,— 
Keep thy charge with patience now, — 
" Who belie veth shall not haste." 

Soldier ! treading weary rounds, 
Tost upon the battle's surge, 

Worn with marchings, faint with wounds,— 
Dost thou long for thy discharge ? 

Pilgrim in the narrow road, — 
Not a rock to shade thy way, — 

Not a friend to share thy load, — 

Wouldst thou welcome death to-day ? 

Brother ! though the way be long, 

Though sore crosses weigh thee down, 

40 



41 

This remember and be strong, — 
Only doubt can pluck thy crown 

" Who believeth shall not haste ;" 
Till the Master's word be given, 

Bide thee, — then, O welcome guest, — 
Then, O soul redeemed, — to heaven ! 



^^Tmi3h: them u^to t% )81uldr6E/^ 



MARK IX. 36, 37. 




jjtissssssji Q^ jjjay. ^)^Q Lord, whose loving arms 
Once folded little children's forms, 
"^ Help us with tender hearts to sing 
This verse, which from Thy Word we bring :— 

Chorus, — God so loved sinners that He gave 
His only Son their souls to save ; 
That whosoever would believe. 
Should everlasting life receive ! 

It is the old, old Christmas hymn 
The angels sung o'er Bethlehem ; 
And when the saints before the throne 
Sing a new song, 'twill be this one. 

But Lord, we would not have the song 
Alone upon our lips and tongue ; 

- - 42 



43 

Thy gentle grace to us impart, 
And write the word upon our heart. 

Now unto Him, whose precious blood 
Hath made us kings and priests to God, 
To Christ, the Lord, through endless days, 
Be songs of blessing, love and praise. 



It Is Well With mij Saul 



JOHN XV. 16. 



HEN peace, like a river, attendeth my 
way,— 

jIC^o'^* When sorrows, like sea billows, roll, — 
vlf^^ Whatever my lot Thou hast taught me to 
know 
It is well, it is well with my soul. 

Though Satan should buffet, though trials should 
come, 

Let this blest assurance control. 
That Christ hath regarded my helpless estate, 

And hath shed His own blood for my soul. 

My sin — O, the bliss of this peace-giving thought ! — 
My sin, — not in part but the whole, — 

Is nailed to His cross and I bear it no more : 
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, oh, my soul ! 

44 



45 

And, Lord, haste the day when the faith shall be 

sight,— 
The clouds be rolled back as a scroli, — 
The trump shall resound, and Thy kingdom shall 

come ! 
" Even so,"— it is well with ray soul ! 



"We Shall Bat J.U Sleep." 



TITUS II. 15. 



i^^ LONG for the coming of Jesus, my Lord ! 
I watch for His signal, I hark for His 
word ; 
^ The word that shall end all my mourning and 

care, 
And bear me, redeemed, to the Lord in the air. 

It is not at death I shall wait for that voice : 
The hope of it now bids my spirit rejoice, — 
To exult in the faith that His coming may save 
Even these weary limbs the reproach of the grave. 

For why should my eyes look with longing or joy, 
For the face of the foe, Christ hath died to destroy ? 
Is there " comfort " or " hope " in the thought that 

this breath 
Shall be yielded at last at the summons of death? 

46 



47 

As long as that banner of black is unfurled, 

Can the triumph of Christ be complete in this 

world ? 
Doth a spirit unclothed, — doth a frame 'neath the 

sod, 
Know all that remains for the people of God ? 

Do we read that forever the path of the grave 
Must be trod by the feet of the saints God would 

save ? 
Shall not some, while yet living, rejoicing arise, 
And, like Enoch, translated, meet Christ in the 

skies ? 

For what do I pray, — that my soul may find peace? 
Do I ask not for groaning creation release ? 
Do I care not how long in rebellion and blood 
The prince of this world bars the kingdom of God ? 

I miy die, but shall then end oppression and woe? 
When I die, shall this world-tide of tears cease to 
flow ? 



48 

When I die, shall the empire of wrong be over- 
thrown, 

And the One who hath right be restored to His 
own ? 

Then why, in these days, among tombs should men 

grope ? 
What spell hath the grave to enkindle our hope? 
What solace sufficient hath death to declare 
To one who remembers a world nigh despair ! 

I look for the coming of Jesus, my Lord ! 

Jehovah made flesh, — the incarnated Word ; 

Who in flesh, for our sake, stands to-day at the 

throne, 
And in flesh, praise His name ! will come back to 

His own ! 

And here doth some brother protest that such 

views 
Show a turning again to the things of the Jews? 
That "the kingdom of Christ is a kingdom within, 
Absolved from connection with matter and sin ? " 



49 

*'With matter and sin!" must the earth then, as 

now, 
To the end bear the branding of guilt on its brow ? 
'Shall the blood fail forever to purge this foul star, 
And be sovereign alone in blest regions afar? 

But whence comes the license to mould words 

divine. 
Like clay of the potter, to fit man's design ? 
Is the promise that Jesus, the Man, shall appear 
To tread and to govern this earth, but a snare ? 

Is all that is holy, like vapor of morn ? 

Is all that's substantial, of filthiness born ? 

Is matter essentially vile and abhorred. 

And had evil a place in the flesh of the Lord ? 

O craft of the serpent, O pride of the heart ! 
What words have yet drawn thee as dark as thou 

art! 
O blindness, that keeps men's traditions and rules, 
And buries God's hope 'neath the standard of 

schools ! 



50 

Speed the day, when the teaching, explicit and 

clear, 
That the hope of the earth is that Christ may 

appear ; 
That in person He rose, that in person again 
He will come and set up his millennial reign : 

That this race, at His coming, will stand as it 

stood 
In the times of Gomorrah, the days of the flood ; 
That, despite all the labors and struggles of men, 
Side by side, wheat and tares shall be growing till 

then : 

That our faith, by this hope, should each moment 
be stayed. 

Nor think that the Lord hath His coming de- 
layed ; — 

Speed the day, when such teaching as this shall be 
whirled. 

On the wings of the wind, round a famishing 
world 1 



51 

O Lord! ere the tempest that gathers shall break, 
Bid the shepherds, the peace-crying shepherds, 

awake ! 
For the flocks are unwarned and the watch-towers 

unmanned, 
And the night is far spent, and the day is at hand ! 



(I& 



Shall Walk in WliiteJ 



REVELATION III. 4. 




HERE comes a time, when life is sped, 
When they who loved the Lord that bled, 
^/axtn. And followed wheresoe'r He led, 
Shall walk in white. 

They yield Him here their latest breath,— 
Love not their lives unto the death, — 
And soon with crowns a conqueror hath, 
They'll walk in white. 

Not those grown cold in their desire, 
Not those defiled in their attire, 
Not those escaped 30 as by fire. 
Shall walk in white. 



53 



53 

'Tis not to make this earth our home, 
'Tis not in part to overcome, — 
Some sin renounced — still grasping some. 
To walk in white. 

It is to love the Lord alone ; 
It is to hear, Well done ! well done; 
It is to share the Saviour's throne. 
To walk in white. 

It is to sup at His dear side; 
It is within His robe to hide ; 
Ah, heart ! it is to be His bride, 
To walk in white ! 



BY THE SAME AUTHOR. 



'HIS pamphlet bears evidence throughout of great care 
in preparation, on the part of the author, who has 
avoided the questionable extremes of many w^riters, and gives 
us a careful, candid, and condensed series of arguments that 
are certainly well worthy of consideration. 

34 pp. and cover, neat. Price 15 cents, or $1.50 per doz. 
:ic*5jj Sent by f?iail, post free, on receipt of price. 

F. H. REVELL, Publisher, 

148 and 150 Madison St.^ Chicago. 



